This is an activity about ultraviolet light. Participants will experiment with ultraviolet light sensitive plastic beads, which are generally white but turn colors when exposed to UV light. Participants are informed about the nature and risks of UV...(View More) light and are asked to be the scientist to explore what types of materials keep the beads, and hence the user, safe from UV light.(View Less)

These short leader guides are designed for a novice user to pick up and implement the activities with ease. They address a range of topics all related to asteroids - most especially Asteroid Vesta. Activities are tagged to quickly find ones that are...(View More) active (involves movement), edible (involves food), calm (stationary) or informative (about NASA's Dawn mission and Vesta).(View Less)

This is an activity about comet composition. Learners will explore the physical characteristics of comets by reaching into a series of boxes and feeling the materials and structures within. They will describe what they observe and speculate on comet...(View More) characteristics being modeled in each box, opening the discussion about the nature of these icy bodies and begin to compare them to other members of our solar system.(View Less)

This is an activity about the states of matter. Learners will participate in a demonstration to reintroduce them to three states of matter: solid, liquid, and gas. The demonstration also introduces them to a fourth state of matter, plasma, through...(View More) investigation of the properties of volume and shape as they relate to common solids, liquids, and gases, and to the mystery matter later identified at the end as plasma. The demonstration also covers plasma's connection to the Sun and connections to science related to the Interstellar Boundary Explorer, or IBEX, spacecraft. This activity complements other IBEX informal education materials. The demonstration requires use of a small plasma ball and, ideally, a slightly darkened room so that the plasma ball can be more easily seen. An instructional video explaining how to facilitate this activity is available: http://bit.ly/125ZW5k.(View Less)

This is an activity about the the functioning of the Interstellar Boundary Explorer, or IBEX, spacecraft. Learners will participate in an interactive demonstration to illustrate how the IBEX spacecraft uses its particle detectors to collect and sort...(View More) particles that come from the boundary of the Solar System. This activity complements other IBEX informal education materials. An instructional video explaining how to facilitate this activity is available: http://bit.ly/YqwWCd.(View Less)

This is an engineering design challenge activity. Learners will use balloons to investigate how a multi-stage rocket, like that used to launch the Interstellar Boundary Explorer, or IBEX, spacecraft, can propel a satellite to a specific orbit....(View More) Learners will construct a two-stage balloon rocket that will be required to reach a particular location on the balloon track, simulating the proper orbit around Earth to be reached by the IBEX satellite. This activity complements other IBEX informal education materials. An instructional video explaining how to facilitate this activity is available: http://bit.ly/ZwlFf4.(View Less)

This is a lesson about the states of matter. Learners will participate in a kinesthetic activity to reintroduce them to three states of matter, solid, liquid, and gas and introduce them to a fourth state of matter, plasma, its connection to the Sun,...(View More) and connections to science related to the Interstellar Boundary Explorer, or IBEX, spacecraft. This activity also demonstrates how the addition of energy can transform matter from one state to another and reviews common examples of matter in each state. This activity complements other IBEX informal education materials. An instructional video explaining how to facilitate this activity is available: http://bit.ly/16eHjJh.(View Less)